Over the past few weeks there have been a number of reports from people in Australia who have said that online baby stores selling low priced products scammed them. Interestingly there are so many different ways in which these people have been scammed that it’s hard to outline each and every point here in detail, so instead we will look at how to avoid potential scams. There are a few dead giveaways of a scam regardless of if it’s an online store selling baby products or clothes.
No Phone Number
There are quite a few online baby stores that do not have a customer service number or a phone number. Even though many of these stores may say that they are based in Australia you have no way of calling them up. If you do not see an online store’s phone number then there is a good chance that either the site is not being run by a professional business or it’s just a scam. Usually professional stores will have a toll free number which you can call and speak to someone about any problems you’re having like your credit card being charged twice or if the shopping cart is not working.
The Website Looks like a Template
There are a number of rather cheap baby stores that are not based in Australia. Even though it’s perfectly fine to buy baby products from eBay, Amazon or other similar international stores the fact is that comparatively unknown stores should be properly investigated. If the store’s website looks like a template then there is a good chance that it’s either running in a test phase or it’s a fly-by-night operation run by scammers. Either way you do want to buy anything from these stores.
Everything is exceptionally Cheap
There are many baby stores that sell products at exceptionally low rates. You may see for instance baby strollers for $50 and think that the store is offering you a great deal. However, the fact is that these stores often never sell you anything, the low rates are mainly to attract people to the online store. Once you buy a few things and enter in your information the store will ask you to wait four or five days for the items to arrive but after which they never arrive. Most stores that advertise items exceptionally low prices are run by scammers. Whenever you see a very cheap baby store which seems too good to be true then investigate the store further if you’re interested in buying or refrain from buying just to be on the safe side.
No Warranty Policy
Even though you would think that a scamming online store will not send you baby products there are some that strangely do. Always check to see if the online store has a warranty and a return policy. Most times stores that do not have a return policy or a warranty policy covering their baby products will sell cheap products but they will refuse to accepted broken, malfunctioning and spoilt items. So, it’s often the intention of the store to cut costs by selling without any responsibility, they will mostly have outsourced shipping to companies and suppliers who will send low quality items to buyers. This is not technically a scam because the site does not display any policies but it’s something you should be aware of.
Based in your Home Country
The best way to avoid online scams in Australia is to make sure that you do business with an Australian site. Australian baby stores like http://gracebaby.com.au are based in Australia and have been selling baby products for years. There are many other stores like this one and their registration can be checked to ensure that they are legit businesses. This way in the event of a dispute you can in fact get your money back. Choosing to do business with international sites can be risky since Australian ecommerce laws may not apply across the border, so you’ll solely be relying on the site’s credibility, like you would with websites like eBay and Amazon both of which also sell baby products but charge a lot of shipping these products to Australia. Gracebaby in Facebook
Mark has been in the baby food and items industry for over a decade. He specializes in both selling and marketing baby stores. His years of experience have enabled him to offer exceptional quality items via his online store at a price point that is unbeatable. This has made his baby store one of the best in Australia.
